If anyone doubted that Bellamy is in love with Clarke, all doubts were erased in Thursday's excellent episode of The 100. Between the search to find Clarke, a necessary trip to Mount Weather, and more craziness in the City of Light, the episode was full of intrigue and emotion. Of course, it wouldn't be an episode of The 100 without characters having to make extremely difficult choices that could have a permanent effect. All in all, this second episode back for The 100 cements the fact that they're clearly taking the season in a new and interesting direction while still remaining true to the show. With everything that happens in this show, things can never truly remain the same and the constant changes and dilemmas the characters face is part of what makes this show so great.

CLARKE'S JOURNEY

At the end of last episode, Clarke was captured by someone whose intent seemed to be to take her to Ice Nation, where they would most likely kill her. Clarke being Clarke, she was not about to go without a fight. Despite multiple escape attempts, she could not free herself from the man who — while definitely on a mission to take her somewhere — did not seem to want to hurt her. When the two were forced into hiding from an Ice Nation army, however, they were given the chance to have a nice chat. While the man, Roan, still did not reveal his intentions, he did make it clear that he was disappointed in her: the girl who was supposed to be a great fighter. He refused to take her back to her own people because he truly believed Clarke did not deserve to return after she abandoned her people in order to deal with her demons. As someone who had also been banished, Roan could not understand why Clarke would willingly leave her people behind. But, as Clarke pointed out, this man does not know her or any of the trials she has been through, just as she doesn't know him. It is easy to judge someone for their decisions if you haven't experienced what they've been through. It is much harder to put yourself in someone else's shoes and feel their pain and guilt enough to understand why they might make a decision to leave their people behind.

No matter how much Clarke and Roan will never understand one another, they did ultimately reach their destination... and it wasn't where anyone thought it would be. Instead of taking Clarke to Ice Nation, Roan took her to Lexa, who had apparently promised Roan that he would no longer be banished if he brought Clarke back safely. Of course, any good leader will make the promises they feel like they have to make to get what they want, but very few will follow through on those promises in the end. So it wasn't surprising that the banishment was not lifted and the man who had fought so hard to bring Clarke to Lexa was no better off than he was before. Roan's interactions with Clarke have been interesting ones, though, and I hope to see him again sometime in the future.

But the real question is, where does this all leave Clarke? For now, it seems as though she'll be safe with Lexa because she's needed for a war that will likely be coming between Lexa's people and Ice Nation. After the cold-hearted betrayal at the end of last season, though, Clarke was not as happy to see Lexa as Lexa was to see. And Clarke is definitely not stepping up, ready to help Lexa with anything she needs. Her anger with the other woman is obvious — just as it is obvious that despite the betrayal, Lexa still cares about Clarke. The dynamic between these two women, who have very different opinions on how to best lead, is an interesting one that I am sure will be explored more as the season goes on.

THE SEARCH FOR CLARKE

As clear as it is that Lexa still cares about Clarke, it is even clearer that Bellamy is in love with her. The desperation in which he has led the search for her would have been enough alone to prove this. However, it was when he first saw her across the field and didn't even stop and think before trying to run after her, even with an army of Ice Nation warriors right in front of him, that confirmed his feelings run deep. Thankfully, he had others with him to stop him from going after her right away and putting himself in danger. They could not keep Bellamy in one place for long though, as he did not hesitate to put on the gear of a dead Ice Nation man to blend in with the army and go out on his own to find Clarke. Bellamy, who usually thinks everything through, was reckless in his search to find and rescue her. The emotional moment the two shared when they finally came face-to-face was filled with all the things that have remained unsaid between the two up until this point.

These two have stepped up and been leaders since the start, having to make the difficult decisions that no one else could possibly make. Because of this, Bellamy and Clarke understand each other more than anyone else does, and this has created a strong bond between them. They both carry the burden of the decisions they have been forced to make and while they have dealt with it differently, they are the only two who truly understand each other. Unfortunately, their emotional reunion was cut short when Roan stabbed Bellamy in the leg — only after Clarke begged and pleaded for him to not kill Bellamy. Further proving his need for Clarke to be safe, Bellamy kept trying to go after them despite barely being able to walk. There's no doubt that Bellamy is determined to find Clarke in a way that someone would only be for someone they truly care about. He was reunited with his group at the end of the episode, but surely he will stop at nothing to keep looking for her.

The search for Clarke also led to some interesting character moments for Monty, who we never get to see enough of. This young man has been through some real trials — just as much as everyone else has been — but the focus is rarely on him or what he is feeling. I was beyond excited to get a storyline focused on him in this episode, as he reunited with his mother who he had not seen since leaving the Arc. During the search for Clarke, Kane, Monty, Bellamy, and others came across a group of people who at first appeared hostile — until his mother recognized Monty. Instead of a fight breaking out, these two groups, who had both come from the Arc, were able to band together in their search, despite the other group clearly having a vendetta against all Grounders. While Bellamy, Monty, and Kane have seen the good in some of the Grounders — including Indra who was there with them — this other group only saw them as the enemy: the people who had killed so many of them once they landed on the ground.

As it turned out, Monty's mother and the other warriors from the Arc had good reason to not trust Grounders. In an incredibly emotional and well-acted scene, Monty confronted his mom, needing to know what happened to his father, who had died. Between his mom and Pike (another man from the Arc who was with them), it was revealed that when the group landed on the ground, a number of children ran out into the snow and were immediately killed by Grounders. Monty's dad was able to save four of the children, but when he went back for a fifth, was killed. The knowledge that his father died a hero was something special for Monty, even though it did not erase the pain. His reunion with his mother and all the pain he felt at the loss of his father did not distract Monty from continuing though. When Bellamy asked if he was alright, Monty's only response was that he had to be. While he has never been depicted as the strongest character in the show, it's clear that Monty is stronger than he's ever let on and I'm so glad we got the chance to see that.

MOUNT WEATHER

Back at home base, everyone was dealing with dilemmas of their own. Lincoln had spent the night sleeping outside with Octavia and a passionate moment between the two was broken when they heard someone approaching. Knowing that a kill order was out for Lincoln, the pair immediately began retreating inside the walls. But it was then that they discovered that the man coming was an old friend of Lincoln's — Nyko. He has been injured and needed medical help, asking them to take him to Abby. When they took him to her, though, Abby knew right away that he would need more blood to survive, and the only place they could get the type of blood they needed was Mount Weather. Up until this point, everyone had avoided going there for supplies as much as possible, knowing that the Grounders might see them returning there as some kind of breaking of the truce. Grounders can only see that place as death —where so many of their people were taken and killed, again showing how perspective can change how you make decisions. For some of the Sky People, however, they saw Mount Weather as a place full of medical supplies that could help keep their people, as well as the Grounders, alive.

Abby was forced to make the decision of whether they should make the journey to Mount Weather to save a Grounder who would definitely die without the supplies. In an interesting move, she turned to Lincoln for advice, showing that these two have built a real trust with each other. Lincoln, who now identifies as more of a Sky Person, barely hesitated to tell Abby that they should go to Mount Weather to save his friend. The thing about Lincoln and many of the Sky People that sets them apart from others is that they do not necessarily see themselves or people as part of one faction or another. Instead, they see everyone as as people and will treat them as such — no matter what group they are a part of. If someone is threatening them or helping, it does not matter which group they are a part of because in the end, everyone is human.

While this trek to Mount Weather proved to be a difficult decision for Abby (who is still struggling between being a doctor and being the Chancellor), it was even more difficult for Jasper. Abby has tried to be there for him as he's dealt with the pain of losing Maya. But so far, Jasper has been unresponsive and unwilling to deal with his feelings. Instead, he has lashed out at those trying to help him. Returning to Mount Weather may have been just what he needed to finally confront those feelings and work through them. As a viewer, it has been frustrating to watch Jasper hurt others (and himself), and we can only hope that this is the start to him becoming tolerable again. Sitting in front of Maya's favorite painting, he finally stopped trying to hide the pain he has been feeling. Octavia was there for him in an emotional moment where Jasper finally started opening up — something that will hopefully lead to a more bearable Jasper for the rest of the season.

THE CITY OF LIGHT

Of course, we could not escape the City of Light in this week's episode of The 100. While still jarringly different from everything else that is happening in the show, this week did bring more intrigue to the storyline. In large part, that was because of the reintroduction of a character that Jaha and Murphy had met on their way to the Promised Land. Emori was a woman that Murphy connected with on their journey but who ultimately betrayed them for her own selfish gain. Encountering her again was a big part of the reason Murphy agreed to continue going along with Jaha. He quickly found out though that Emori was being hired by those who believed in the City of Light to steal technology and other things. Murphy has always had a questionable moral compass, but he has proven lately that it is possible for him to care about people. When Emori tried to steal the technology back from those she had gotten it for, Murphy tried to stop her, knowing it would be dangerous. And when she was caught, he did something that he haven't seen him do in a while — kill a man to save someone other than himself.

At this point, Murphy is completely and utterly confused about what is going on, as much as we are. Apparently, the technology that he and Emori got away with was actually the woman we had seen Jaha with (A.L.I.E.). After all he's been through with Jaha though, Murphy is unwilling to go along for the crazy ride any longer. Moreover, despite the previous betrayal, he is still drawn to Emori, leaving him with the only option right now of traveling with her. Murphy is a character who has always had a lot of anger within him, but as the show has gone on, we have seen him try to find better ways to deal with it. He's been trying to become a better person but is up against so much uncertainty, that it's almost impossible to know what the right thing to do is.

This episode also gave us a glimpse into what exactly the City of Light is — a place where Jaha goes when he meditates, where there is no pain or death. Jaha wants to bring all his people there because it is where he has finally found peace. This whole plot is so trippy and out of place though, that it is difficult to connect with it as an audience. Because of that, the scenes which take involve Jaha and even Murphy are some of the weakest of the season so far. As they continue to reveal more information and give us a reason to be interested in this storyline, I am sure it will become better, but the writers have a lot of work to do to get there.